Wuzhen

Date: Friday, May 27th (leaving at 7am from school)

Cost: 200RMB (for entrance and transportation)

What to bring: money (souvenirs, lunch?), rain gear if needed, camera, daypack

Transportation: Leave from school at 7am and plan to return by 3:20pm (traffic depending)

Description: Wuzhen, a 1300-year-old water town on the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, is a national 5A scenic area and one of China’s top ten historical & cultural towns. Located on the Hangzhou-Jiaxing-Huzhou Plain in northern Zhejiang Province, it is at the center of the golden triangle consisting of Shanghai, Hangzhou and Suzhou. Wuzhen can be easily accessed through a number of expressways and national highways.

In 2001, Wuzhen was named as a candidate for UNESCO’s World Cultural Heritage List. At the end of 2006, it was included in the revised List of China’s Candidates for UNESCO World Cultural Heritage. In 2009, Wuzhen was named as the first PATA eco-tourism destination in Mainland China.

The ancient Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal flows through the town, which is divided by waterways into four areas, Dongzha, Xizha, Nanzha, and Beizha. Since its foundation in 872 A.D., Wuzhen has never changed its name, location, waterways, or way of life. Traditional buildings remain intact today even after hundreds years of weathering. (from http://www.wuzhen.com.cn/english/about_wuzhen.asp)